Automatic safety stop attachment for knitting machines



June 13, 1933. J. H. KOEBERLE; 9.

AUTOMATIC sAFETTsToP ATTACHMENT For; KNITTING MACHINES Filed July 18, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet l b R N g Q 1 N VEN TOR.

Jomv HJfoEeau E ATTORNEY.

June 13, 1933. J. H. KOEBERLE 1,913,450

'- AUTOMATIC SAFETY STOP ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed July 18, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

' JZHN H. fiat-35m. E,

ATTORNEY.

J. H. KOEBERLE 50- 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

JoumH/fogszna. 1 BY June 13,1933.

AUTOMATIC SAFETY STOP ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Flled July 18 1931 ATTORNEY.

June 13, 1933. J. H. KOEBERLE vAUTOMATIC SAFETY STOP ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 VINVENTOR/ Filed July 18, 1931 EBE'RLE.

ATTORNEY p Pa tented'June l3, A i f y i p s- 1;smms mimToF-mE- -patentitoWright1,092,885 ,issuedApril14th,closedfby the slackingof the yarn passing 1'51 cylinder of thelooping machine, to prevent lever upon the yarn,:thereby effecting the 3 i 1 20, chine automatic M i e t ith rel t t d f ty tage all as hereinafter describedandclaimed 75 I j1 5 as) b :6 fiecfiveat all times during theruningimachineprovided with a safety'stop'ata 5b the pin cylinder.

i mam: or; wmoweejove, newsm n; hssiqiqbg M i 1 e-me cH ae i ww e e RE sY v I-Mq yammr eumysmmm m eon xmmmmcnmn i i l menstruatmed my 18*, ise msiiarno. 551593.

automatic safety stopattachment:E rknitJ ingla second;normally opensw itch immeting machines andwmore particularly: tothe diatelygahove the yarn guide Which guides f type of knitting: machines: known as loopers, the yarn before the latter is knit bytheloop It of thegeneral type disclosedinUnitedStates 111g needle, said switch being adapted to be, 5

l invention relates to a new Myin ention further; consists position? 1914, and UnitedStates patents to Davis through said yarnguide, due tothemissing 1,050,432 and'i1,050, l33, bothlissued January ofia stitch bythelooping needle. a

a 1401,1913, and the patent to Davis 1,054,6 8, ,My lnventlolifurther consistsflin so P 10 issued February25th, 1913. a a, i it a :i n n t1o11ing-the electro nagnet referredto, so as -Myinventionfurther relates tofan auto: to-causefthe dropping of the trip arm or-lever matic safety stop attachment which is adapte which; normally rides or rests on the yarn fled tostop aloopingmachine automatically being knit when, said electromagnet isener:

when any waste material:isxcaught inithe pin gized,-fro1n;the normal position of said trip breakingvof th y lo i n dl any i t r stopping of the looping machine in the cong i iferencewith the uniform regularoperationof Ventional manner in Which-such machine a the loopingneedle. My safety stopflattachwouldbestopped, if the yarn on hi h id ment is also adapted to stop the loopingnmatrip lever usuallyrides were tobreak, accord-l lly immediately upon the mg to the construction disclosed in the pat id missing of a Stitch by the looping needle, entsreferred to and which will hereinafter thereby preventing the formation of defec b generallyset fortha U i a tiveproductswhich are sold ata lower price My invention fu'rther consists in various as seconds; other novel features of construction advanj forthywhich is electrically operated and illgs Iintvhich: a a p v which is so connected to the'starting and sto s :Flgure 1 represents a fragmentary, diastop attachment of the generalcharacter set in Connection with the accompanying draw i g ha of th l pi hi fgramlnatic plan View of a conventional loopa tachment embodying my invention. i A n inventionfurther relatesf toan aut Figure 2srepresents atdiagramrhatic View matic safetystopattachment of this general nds e l v i n Showing the general alloh ct which a b lied t hi e cat on arrangement of the pertinent co f3already manufactured without\inanyway lngparts, w T a a A 7: y i interferingwiththeir structure or assembly gu a viewsilnilar to Figure 2show= and one which canhemade and assembled at g e p o y n n r i n dcer' nominalncostn g ainof the coacting parts shown inFigure 2: a With th ab v d inyi my in ti Figure; 4 represents a fragmentary dia-f a consists inprovidingan electromagnet p0- g m ivlewand side elevation w g sitioned iaboye the yarn guide which feeds e meanssofsmrtmgiend oPp g -Q the yarn or thread to the pin cylinder of th chine 1n TBlfltlOIl to the automatic :safetystop looping machine-,said electromagnet being construction forming the subject of adapted to be energized by theclosingtof a lnventlon. i r jp45 normally open switch positioned aboveand Figuresfi to 9,r inclusiye,= show details of e in closeproximity to the'pincylinder in adthe switches adapted to actuate my novel Vance of the looping needle, said switch besafetystop'attachrnent. I i J i T i ing adapted to bewclosed by the existence of Figure 10 represents a diagrammatic View a any obstruction carriedby or resting upon showing the general plan ofthe conventional i tarting and stopping mechanism in 'its rela 1L0 ningof the looping machine. a

opposite direction to tion to the safety vention.

Referring to the drawings, in which like reference characters indicate designates the bed plate or support of a conventional looping machine, from which eX- tends the horizontal supporting arm '22 which supports the disc or dial plate 24, around which is adapted to revolve in a uniform continuous manner driven by suitable connections (not'shown) from the shaft-28 The shaft 28 carries and is driven by the cone clutch 30 which is adapted to engage a corresponding seat in the pulley 32 which is driven by the belt 34. The cone clutch 30 is engaged or disengaged by moving the push at 37 to the link 38 which is pivoted at 39. When the push rod is pulled in the direction of the arrow 36 the cone clutch 30 is engaged and the shaft 28revolves to drive the loopingmachine. lVhen it is desired to stop the machine, the push rod 35 is pushed in the disengage the cone stop attachment of my inclutch 30. r -Heretofore looping machines-of this general character have been provided with ame chanically operated automatic safety stop attachment which consisted of a'trip lever 40-which normally rides on the yarn 42 and which, when the yarn 42 breaks, is adapted to drop, thus causing the arm 46, to which the tripleveris rigidly secured, to turn on its axis to'lower the crank portion of the arm 46, on which rests the finger 52' of the arm 54, thus causing the arm 54, to which the finger 52 is rigidly secured, to turn upon its axis, so as to bring the hooked end 56 of the arm 54 into the path of the pin or lug 9 58 on the wheel 60 on the shaft 28. The engagement of the pin'58 with the hooked end 56 of the arm 54 draws the arm 54 in the direction of the arrow (Fig. 10) thereby causing the finger 52 to engage the finger 64 which is rigidly secured at 66 to the starting and stopping push rod or lever 35, to move the latter in a direction opposite to the direction of the arrow 36 to disengage the clutch 30, thereby stopping the machine. The construction heretofore described constitutes the only safety stop arrangement provided on looping machines of the character referred to and disclosed in the prior patents above mentionedand serves to stop the machine only. when and if the yarn 42 breaks.

In order to utilize this same stopping mechanism to stop themachine when the pin cylinder is obstructed or when, during the looping operation a stitch is missed, I provide the electromagnet 70, which, when energized, is adapted to draw up the upper yarn guide 72 thereby laterally to displace the yarn 42 from under the trip lever 40, thus causing the trip lever 40 to drop and hence to stop the machine in the manner heretofore described like parts, 20

pin cylinder 26, which is rod 35 which is pivoted in connection with the breaking of the yarn 42. The yarn guide 72 is tapered upwardly as best shown in Figure 10 and while the yarn 42 bears on the upper thin end of the guide 7 2 it remains under the tip of the trip lever 40. WVhen the yarnguide 72 is raised by action ofthe magnet the yarn 42 bears against the lower thicket portion of the yarn guide 7 2and is in thatway laterally displaced from under the trip lever 40 thus causing the latter to fall. The electromagnet 70 is adapted to be energized bythe transformer 74 into which electrical energy is delivered by the wires 76 leading from any desirable source of electrical current. From thetransformer 74 extends the wire 78 which is securedto the binding post 80, from which extends the wire 81 to the binding post 82 of the normally open spring switch 84, said spring switch 84 being closed to ground the circuit only when the starting and stopping push rod '35 is in its forward position, that is, when the machine is in operation, in which position the pushrod 35 the cam 85 on said push rod is in contact with said switch. (See Figures 4 and 10 Another wire 86 leads from the.

transformer 74 to the binding post 88, from which a wire 89 leads to the binding post 90, from which a wire 92extends to one end of the coil of the electromagnet 70. From the other end of the coil of the electromagnet 70 another wire 98 extends to the binding post 100, from which two wires 102 and 104 extend to the binding posts 106 and 108 of the normally open switches 110 and 112 respectively.

With the switch 84 closed during the running of the machine, the electromagnet 70 will only be energized when one or both of the switches 110 and 112 are closed to complete the circuit through the electromagnet. Thus if a piece of waste or other obstruction 114 is caught in the pin cylinder 26, it must pass under the spring contact member 116, which is connected to the electric circuit by the wire 112w, thereby pushing the latter upwardly against the binding post 108 of the switch 112, thereby closing the circuit and energizing the electromagnet 70, whereupon the arm 72 is attracted upwardly towards the magnet thus withdrawing the yarn 42 from under the trip lever 40 and causing the latter to drop, thereby to stop the machine in the manner heretofore described in exactly the same wayas if the yarn 42 had broken. In this way, the machine is stopped before the waste or other obstruction 114 reaches the looping needle 118 (see Figure 2) to prevent the breakingof said needle or the improper operation thereof, Similarly, when the yarn 42 becomes'slack, due to the missing of one or more stitches by the looping needle 118, the resilientyarn guide 121, through which the yarn '42 must pass prior to reaching the looping needle, and which is normally prevented from closing the switch 110 by the teny through the electromagnet 70 again to enerits own springy character, against the contact member 120 thereby to close the switch 110 and to complete the electric circuit with which it is connected by the wire 121m gize the latter and to pull the arm 72 upwardly thereby to withdraw the yarn 42 from p under the trip lever 40, thus causing themachine to stop inthe manner heretofore set forth.

I have deemed it unnecessary in the present specification to illustrate the looping machine completely or to describe in detail the operation of the looping machine, since these machines are fully disclosed in the patents referred to in the preamble, and since they are extensively sold by the Southern Textile Machinery Company, of Paducah, Kentucky, and are of familiar structure and operation ping mechanism, an electro-magnet adapted to be energized by the completion of said electric circuit upon the closure of said switch by said contact member, and a guide adapted to be actuated by said electro-magnet to dis place said yarn from under said trip lever.

2. Thejcombination with a looping machine, including a pin cylinder, a driving mechanism, and a pin cylinder stopping mechanism, of a resilient yarn guide forming part of a normally open switch, a yarn passing through said yarn guide and normally tensioning the latter to maintain said switch in open condition, a trip lever normally riding on said yarn and adapted, when falling off said yarn by the slacking, breaking or displacement of said yarn, to actuate said stopping mechanism, an electric circuit connected to said switch, an auxiliary guide adapted, when actuated, to displace said yarn to anyone engaged in the manufacture of "from under said trip lever, and anelectroconsists only in providing thetwo switches 110 and 112,which are adapted tobeclosed hosiery or other knit products. My invention by the slacking of the yarn 42, due to the missing of astitch or by an obstruction 114 in the pin cylinder 26, to complete an electric circuit leading to the electromagnet 70 to energize the latter todraw up the yarn guide 72 to withdraw the yarn 42 from under the trip lever 40, which trip leverforms part of the conventional looping machine and acts to stop the machine in a mechanical manner, which is herein described and which forms part of the looping machines as sold by the Southern Textile Machinery Company referred to.

While I have described my invention as operating to stop the looping machine automatically when the yarn becomes slack or when the pin cylinder becomes obstructed it isobvious that my invention is equally applicable, with or without slight changes or allomagnet connected to said circuit and adaptcation of parts to operate to stop the looping machinewhen other defects arise, such as the loosening'of the looping needle to undue projection, or to twisting of a pin on the pin cylinder, etc., and that my attachment does not interfere with the normal operation of the stopping attachment provided for stop-i ping the machine when the yarn breaks.

Having thus describedmy invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: i

1. The combination with a looping machine, including a pin cylinder, a driving mechanism, and a pin cylinder stopping mechanism, of a contact member forming part of a normally open switch and positioned near said pin cylinder, said contact member being adapted to close said switch by an obstruction in said pin 0 linder, an

switch, a trip lever normally riding on the yarn used in said looping machine and adapted, when dropping off said yarn, to operate said stop- 

